Heel-breasting machine.



C. H. LITTLEFIELD.

HEEL BREASTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1914. RENEWED OCT. 16,1915.

1, 173,724. Patented Feb. 29, 1916.

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C. H. LITTLEFIELD.

v HEEL- BREAS TING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED APR. 10,.1914. RENEWED OCT. 16,1915.

1 1 7 3,724 Patented Feb. 29, 1916.

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HEEL BREASTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1914. RENEWED OCT. 16,1915.

Patented Feb. 29

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C. H. LITTLEFIELD.

HEEL BREASTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1914. RENEWED OCT. 16,1915.

A 1,173,724. Patented Feb.29,19 16.

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CRLES H. LITTLEFIELD, OF HAVERHlILL, MASSACHUSETTS.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. so, rare.

Application filed April 10, 1914, Serial No. 830,841. Renewed October 16, 1915. Serial No. 56,341-

To all whomit may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES H. Lrrrnn FIELD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Haverhill, in the county of Essex'and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Heel-Breasting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in machines for breasting heels, and more particularly for breasting what are known as leather Louis heels, the breasts of -which are usually curved or concaved transversely at the base, so that a reciprocating breasting knife cannot be employed for breasting more than a portion, if any, of the heel. Prior to my invention, the methods which have been employed in breasting heels of this type,

after they have been attached, have usuallyv involved the performance of three or more different operations, and as this work is usually imperfectly xlone, much breast scouring is usually necessary, making the whole operation of finishing the breast of heels of this type very expensive, as compared with the expense of finishing the breast of an ordinary heel having-a straight breast.

The object of my invention is .to'. produce a machine for breasting heels of the above described type, which is adapted to reduce the number of operations necessary, and

which is adapted so to shape the breast that- I a will be practically in finished form, whereby the amount of breast scouring necessary will be hereby greatly reduced, and the expen'se of producing the finished heel adapted to the shoe will be materially lessened.

A machine, which is a preferred embodiment of my invention, is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of the machine. Fig. 2 is a side=elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is a detailed plan view of the jack support. Fig. 4 is a side elevation" showing certain parts in a different position from that of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of-- one form of cutter which I employ, and Fig.

6 is an end view thereof. Fig. 7 is a side elevation of another form of cutter, and Fig. 8 is an end view thereof. Fig. 9 is a sectional view on a li'ne 9-9 of'Fig. 7. Figs. 10 and 11 are side elevations, illustratin a heel attached to a shoe, and showin di erent steps in the breasting operation. ig. 12 is a sectional view on line 1212 offFig. 10. Fig. 13 is a sectional view on line 1313 of Fig. 11.

As shown in the drawing, I provide a vertical column 15, in the base of which the mean driving shaft 16 is mounted, said shaft havmg a pulley 17 thereon, which is arranged to drive a cutter shaft 13, 'journ aled' in the head of the machine, through a belt 19 and a pulley 20 on the cutter shaft. Said shaft 18 is arranged horizontally, and one end thereof is extended beyondhthehead, to

provide a support for a cylindrically shaped cutter 21, which is splined thereon, and held in place by a clamping nut. In order to pre vent vibration of the cutter shaft, a lug 22 is formed on the head of the machine,-and a bracket arm 23 is adjustably'mounted therein, said bracket having a bearing in its end in which the end of the shaft 18 is journaledand is provided with a pin 30 which engages the support 27, so that, by swinging sa d lever, said support 27 may be moved to a limited extent "in the guide ways 26. spring locking device 31 is provided on lever 28, which is adapted to lock said lever in two different positions, as shown in Fig. 3.

The support 27 is provided with a depend ing portion, in which a pair of vertical guide ways 33 are formed, and a lifting slide 34 is mounted in said guide-ways, said slide being connected at its lower end to one end of a lever 35,.mounted'on bracket 36, formed 1 integral with the support 27, the;opposite end of said lever 35"being connected by a link 37, ton foot treadle 38, pivoted on the base of the machine. Horizontal guide-ways 40 are formed in the upper end of the lifting slide 34, which extend at right angles to the vertical plane in which the axis of the cutter shaft lies, and a jack 41 is supported by a pivot 42 on a slide 43, which is reciprocally mounted in the guide-ways 40. A toe rest 44 is also mounted on the slide 43, and is provided with an adjustable toe support 45 arranged to coiiperate with said jack 41. A bracket 46 is mounted onth'e rear end of the jack 41, and a rod 47is mounted to move vertically in said bracket ,-,46, and to be clamped in different vertical'positions therein by a simple ca'm lever 48 mountedin the bracket 46. A spring 49 is mounted on'the rod 47, in engagement with a shoulder thereon and resting on bracket 46, so that said spring acts to lift same to an extent when the rod 47 is released. A finger 50 is adjustably mounted in a socket 47 said 'finger being provided with a head 51 at its end, arranged to be pressed on the top of the heel of a shoe held on the jack to clamp the heel firmly thereon.

' A weight 53 is connected by a cord 54 to the slide 43, said cord passing over a pulley 55, so that said weight acts constantly to pull slide 43 rearwardly. A friction roll 56 is mounted on the 'rear end of the slide 43,

and a bracket 57 is mounted on the support 27, and is heldthereon by a bolt and slot connection which permits forward and rearward adjustment thereof by means of an adjusting rod 59' extending to the front. A cam plate 60 is secured on the bracket 57 said plate being connected thereto by bolts 61 which pass through slots therein, so that said cam plate may be adjusted vertically, and readily removed, and another of different form substituted, when desired. A spring catch 63 is provided on the tideways 40, and is arranged to lock the slide 43 in forward position, so that 1t Wlll not be drawn rearwardly while the shoe is being placed on the jack, as shown in Fig. 3.

In practice, the wooden last, havlng a shoe thereon, is pressed firmly thereon, by pressing the head-51 on the top of the heel,

and then pressing down the rod 47, and' lockingthe same in depressed positionby cam lever 48. The toe rest will also be adjusted so that the shoe will be held in the desired position. When the shoe 1s breasted on an iron last, a stop screw 64 (indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2) may be employed to limit the rearward tilting movement of' the jack 41. r

During the first operation, the cylindrical cutter 21, which is of uniform diameter, is

employed, and the cutter shaft is rotated at a high rate of speed. After the shoe has,

' been placed in position on the jack, the

catch 63 is moved to release the slide 43,-

which is immediately drawn rearwardly by -the. weight 53, until the roll 56 on the slide 43, engages the vertical face '65 of the cam plate 60. The operator then depresses the treadle 38, lifting the slide 34, the jack and other parts supported thereon, so that the breast portion of the heel is carried up into engagement with the cutter 21. If it is desired to form the breast of the heel at a rearward inclination, the cam plate 60 is provided with a correspondingly rearwardly inclined portion 66, which extends from theupper end of the vertical portion 65,. so that, as the roll 56 is raised above said vertical portion, the slide 43 will be drawn rearward by the weight 53, said roll being held against said inclined portion, as the slide is raised. The heel isthus moved toward the cutter to a predetermined extent, as it is lifted.

The bracket 57, and cam plate 60, are so ad- 4 justed that the cutter will engage the breast portion of the heel just as the roll 56 reaches the upper end of the vertical portion 65, and will remove the surplus stock from the heel breast, and'form a flat, rearwardly inclined breast face on the heel, as the jackis raised.

That is, the heel will be caused to have a combined upward and rearward movement in relation to the cutter, forming the rearwardly inclined breast face portion a on the heel, as indicated in Fig. 10.

The heel blanks, which are used in forming heels of the above described type, are

concaved transversely, but the radius ofthis curvature must be varied according to conditlons, and said concaved surface varled according to conditions, and said concaved surface must extend forwardly onto the shank of the shoe from the inner end of said rearwardly inclined breast portion. To accomplish this result duringthe same liftin operation, the cam ,plate is also provide with a forwardly inclined portion 67, which extends from-the upper end of the portion 66, so that when the roll 56 reachesthe uppzr end of the portion 66, the slide 43 will pushed back, upon further lifting move ment thereof, causing the shoe to be drawn back from the cutter as it is raised, and causing the projecting base portion to be concaved and forming movement is continued until the cutter has reduced the projecting base portion of the the surface 6. This heel to a sharp'edge at the middle of the shank,"as illustrated in Fig. 10, the upward movement being limited by the-shank guard 24."'-Thev jack is then lowered, and drawn backfto .its central position, this the operation; being then finished.

-A's my operation will usually be perportion of formed onone lot of shoes in succession, be-

fore. the machine is adapted for the next operation, the shoe will then be removed, and

the operation repeated, and it may be here noted that, before removin the shoe, the cam lever 48 is lifted, permltting spring 49 to lift the head 51 out of engagement with the heel. I I v The above described operation does not trirn away the projecting portion -of the heel to an edge throughout the entire width of the shank of the shee,"but only through-' out the middle portion thereof, and, in order? to shape the side portions" thereof into the r;

desired form I employa' cutter which is concaved longitudinally, the ends being of greater diameter than the middle portion.

F or-this purpose I provide a pair of cutter j sections 70, which are tapered from end to end in a gradual concaved curve, and these sections are placed on the cutter shaft with their smaller ends adjacent to each other, and, as it is unnecessary to remove the middle portion of the heel breast with this cutter, a series of washers 73 is placed on the shaft between said sections, and said sections are clamped together with a nut 72. The concavity of the cutter thus corresponds to the convexity of the shoe shank. The particular distance with Which the cutter sections are separated may readily be varied by increasing or decreasing the number of washers.

Whenthe cutter shaft is provided with a.

ployed, will be trimmed to an edge, forming the beveled surfaces 0, as indicated in Figs. 11 and 13, the non-cutting middle portion being brought to bear on the middle of the shoe shank at the end of the operation. The heel is then shaped substantially into finished form by these two operations, so that it will be merely necessary to smooth the surfaces during the bufiing operation.

Inasmuch as different forms of heel breasts may be desired, a corresponding variety of forms of cam plates may be provided, so that, the jack, when it is-lifted, will be automatically moved to the desired positions, as will be readily understood.- Provisions for various adjustments are made, so that an accurate breasting of the heel may be secured :the bracket 51 being adapted for rearward and forward adjustment, to provide for variations in the position of the heels and depth of chip which it may be necessary to remove, and/ the cam plates being adapted for verticaladjustment to correspond to heels of different heights.

In order that the shoe may be accurately breasted, it is necessary that the jack beheld in a somewhat different lateral position in breasting rights than in breasting lefts and for this reason, I provide the slide way 26, and locking lever 28, with which the lateral position of the jack may be readily shifted from one to the other, according to whether a right or left shoe is to be breasted.

I claim 1. In a heel-breasting machine, a cutter mounted to rotate about a fixed axis, a shoe support arranged to hold the breast of a heel of a shoe on said support in engagement with said cutter in such position that the axis of the cutter extends transversely of the heel, and means to move said support to carry said heel in the direction of its height, and, at the same time, transversely to said direction in a plane perpendicular to said axis While held in engagement with said cutter.

2. In a heel-breasting machine, the combination of a cutter mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis, a jack for holding a shoe in transverse engagement with the heel-breast.

3. In a heel-breasting machine, the combination of a horizontally disposed shaft having a cylindrically, shaped cutter thereon adapted to extend the width of a heel, a shoe-support arranged to hold a shoe in inverted position, so that the cutter extends transversely of the breast of the heel thereof, and means to lift said support and'to move it rearwardly and forwardly while the heel-breast is held in engagement with the cutter.

4. In a heel-breasting machine, the combination of a horizontally disposed shaft'having a cylindrically shaped' cutter thereon adapted to extend the-width'of a heel, a shoe-support arranged to hold a shoe in inverted position, so that the cutter extends transversely of the breast of the heel thereof, treadle-mechanism to lift said support vertically, and a stationary cam disposed to move said support horizontally to different predetermined positions relative to the cutter as it is lifted. I v v 5. In a heel-breasting machine, the combination of a shoe-support, a horizontally disranged to extend axially, transversely'of the heel-breast of a shoe on said support, means permitting vertical and horizontal movements of said support in a plane at right angles to the axis of the cutter, lifting means for causing verticalmovement'of said support, and guiding means for moving said support horizontally as it is lifted.

7. In a heel-breasting machine, the com-' bination of a shoe-support, a horizontally disposed shaft having a cutter thereon arposed shaft having a cutter thereon are ranged to extend axially, transversely of the heel-breast of a shoe on said support, means permitting vertical and horizontal movements of said support in a plane at right angles to the axis of the cutter, lifting means for causing vertical movement of said support, means constantly actuated to move said support rearwardly, and a stationary abutment for limiting the rearward move-- ment of said support at different points, according to the position of elevation of said support.

8. A heel-breasting machine comprising a.

cutter mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis and shaped longitudinally to correspond to the configuration of the heel-breast transversely, a shoe-support movable vertically and horizontally to cause the cutterto engage the heel-breast of a shoe thereon in transverserelation, and means to cause said support to move forwardly and rearwardly,

as it is moved vertically with relation to the cutter.

9. A heel-breasting machine comprising a cutter mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis and shaped longitudinally to correspond to the transverse configuration of the heel-breast; a shoe-support movable vertically and horizontally to cause the cutter to engage the heel-breast of a shoe thereon in transverse relation, a stationary abutment v to limit the rearward movement of said support at different points according to the position to which-it is lifted, and means permitting adjustment of said abutment horizontally.

port at different points according to the position to which it is lifted, and means permitting adjustment of said abutment vertically.

11. In a heel-breasting machine, a jack arranged to support a shoe in inverted position, a rotary cutter disposed above the jack to rotate about a horizontal axis which is" approximately perpendicular to the vertical, longitudinal plane thereof and constructed and arranged to extend entirely across the breast of the heel of a shoe supported on the jack, and means to cause predetermined relaarravaa tive movement of the jack and cutter in said plane, and in the direction of the height of the heel, to trim the heel breast from the top of theheel to its base.

12. In a heel-breasti'ng machine, a vertically and horizontally movable jack arranged to support a shoe in inverted position, a 1'0- tary cutter disposed'above the jack to rotate about a horizontal axis which is approximately perpendicular to the vertical, longitudinal plane thereof and is constructed and arranged to extend entirely across the breast of the heel of a shoe supported on the jack, means to lift the jack in said plane, and means to guide the jack, as it is lifted, in transverse relation to said axis, to causethe cutter to trim across the breast of the heel,

, from its. top to its base.

- 18. In a heel-breasting machine, a vertically and horizontally movable jack arranged to support a shoe in inverted position, a rotary cutter disposed above the jack to rotate about a horizontal axis which is approximately perpendicular to the vertical, longitudinal plane thereof and is constructed and arranged to extend entirely across the breast of the heel of a shoe supported on the jack, means to lift the jack, and a fixed guide arranged to control the position of the Jack transversely of said axis, in the different vertical positions thereof, to move the heel in a predetermined path in the direction of its height and cause the cutter to trim it .across its breast from top to base.

14. In a heel-breasting machine, a jack arranged to hold a shoe in inverted position, a cylindrically-shaped cuttermounted to rotate about. a horizontal axis which is approximatelyi perpendicular to the vertical, longi-- tudinal plane thereof and extends transversely of the direction of the height of the heel of a'shoe supported on the jack and in approximate parallelism with its breast surface, means to lift the jack and to hold it in predetermined transverse relation to the cutter in its different positions of elevation, to trim the heel breast from the heel top to its base, and means to limit the upward movement of the jack at a position in which the cutter moves in close proximity to the shank of the shoe.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing-witnesses.

CHARLES H. LITTLEFIELD.

Witnesses:

- L. H. HARRIMAN, HARRY J. COLE. 

